


Take the long road home

by Fawkespryde



Category: Sideshow - Fandom
Genre: Bed packed the snacks, Buck being a good navigator, Just a lot of cuddles and soft content, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Relationship Goals, Road trip time, Soft Boys, Tomato being the driver, and Criken planned the trip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:28:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28273872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fawkespryde/pseuds/Fawkespryde
Summary: Tomato parked the van underneath the awning and removed the key, sitting back for a moment in his seat while taking in the view around him. He was rather quiet for a long time and slowly a smile found its way on his tired features. “You know,” He started in a quiet tone. “The pictures really don’t do this place justice. It’s bigger than I thought it would be.”
Relationships: BedBananas & Bucklington (Video Blogging RPF), BedBananas/Jared | Tomato Gaming, BedBananas/Keenan Mosimann, Bucklington/Jared | Tomato Gaming, Bucklington/Keenan Mosimann, Jared | Tomato Gaming/Keenan Mosimann
Kudos: 3





	Take the long road home

**Author's Note:**

> A lovely anon commissioned me for some soft boy content with the prompt that the sideshow boys go on a road trip together. It was really fun to write and really kept my mind occupied during the lockdown. <3

“Buck! Bed! Hurry up and grab the last of your things. We need to leave in the next couple of minutes before traffic picks up.” Criken called out from the hallway, the sound of him wheeling his luggage behind him growing more distant as he got to the front door. There was the sound of a car horn outside and Criken let out an exasperated sigh before he went outside and a muffled argument took place. “Yes, I get it. We’re running late. Don’t get your panties in a twist sweetie.”

Buck listened to Criken and Tomato from his room as he packed up the last of his clothes into his bag. He could hear them from his open window and after tossing a pair of socks on top of his bed, walked over and closed the window before leaving. Looking through the glass he watched Criken open the back of the rented van and toss his luggage in. From his perspective, he could see that the vehicle was almost fully packed up with all the things they were bringing with them for their getaway. Seeing it really put into perspective that this was actually happening. They were actually going to leave the city for a week and spend time together in a rented cottage in the middle of nowhere. It was a dream come true and a break long needed.

When Buck proposed a few days away from all the stress that had been accumulating over them for months, Bed was the first to jump at the chance. The two of them were the most excited and didn’t care about where they would end up going as long as they were all together. Hell, Bed even pitched forth the idea of camping before that was shot down by a tired looking Tomato who claimed that he ‘didn’t want to have to deal with the bear’. The circles had gotten prominent under his eyes from the hours of work he had been doing behind the scenes and despite stating he didn’t need any sort of break, looked the worst off out of all of them. His red hair was pressed flat to his forehead and his skin was a pallor of someone who hadn’t seen the sun in a long while. In all honesty, Buck was worried about him because Tomato looked like he hadn’t been taking care of himself for the past few weeks and the lines were prominent in his face when they finally pulled him from his room to have dinner together for once.

So after plenty of discussion, they came to the decision to escape work for a whole week. The whole thing was Buck’s idea but the planning and details were all spearheaded by Criken and Bed. The two of them had heard his frustrations and agreed with him that they needed a break. Criken had started putting the pieces together several months in the background of all their busy schedules and Bed did a bulk of the scheduling, from calling places that were available to securing a van for their travels. How he managed to find a good time that they could all take off without having to worry about work was beyond him but it wasn’t the first time that Bed had managed to put all the pieces on the table for everyone to understand and follow through with.

Criken and Tomato worked overtime and got enough materials put aside to ensure that there would be no lack of workflow going out. It was one of the more decent things about being a content creator. Once videos were pieced together and edited, they just had to queue them up for upload and hope that Youtube wouldn’t have any rendering issues during upload. They worked late into the night, Tomato especially, since he was a more meticulous perfectionist when it came to his work and he was quietly editing content for Criken’s channel as well to take the rushed workload off of Shayne. He’d go on into the early hours of the morning and Buck would be lying if he said that his boyfriends and him didn’t deserve to take some time off. They had all been so busy with their own project for several months now that none of them really had any time for each other. It was maddening, especially since they all lived together but hardly ever saw one another for hours at a time while they streamed and edited content. It progressively got worse when date night would come and go and they’d all be in their own offices working throughout the night with promises that they’ll go out ‘next week’. Then next week would come and go and nothing would happen.

It was the main reason why Buck wanted this week-long vacation to work out. He just wanted time away from all the stress and be around his boyfriends. He missed the days when they’d be piled up in the living room watching trash tv and cuddling under a big puffy duvet. They’d just order in food and lay around, cracking jokes and bad puns till they’d all pass out in a warm pile of blankets and pillows. Buck missed snuggling against Tomato for warmth during the cold nights and feeling those long arms wrapped loosely around his waist. The redhead was practically a furnace and even with his window open at nighttime, his room was always the warmest and it always attracted them all during the winter season. He missed laying on Bed’s chest when they both couldn’t sleep and had too much running in their heads. They’d pass a glance to each other and with a mutual nod, would slip out from under the covers and sneak out into the living room. Bed would make tea and they’d lay on the couch just murmuring quiet noises back and forth, the sound of rain pattering outside as the minutes would meld into hours. Buck would start to doze off at the feeling of Bed’s fingers stroking through his hair and a wispy kiss pressed to his cheek. He even missed the times Criken would kick his butt in Super Smash Bros. He’d be hitting the buttons rapidly, even tilting his body back and forth to try and move his character faster across the screen. There’d be the warm weight of Criken at his back, curling up behind him with his arms around his waist and his face pressed sleepily to his neck as they both played Brawl till the early hours of the morning.

“Hey, did you bring your charger?” 

Buck turned away from the window as a voice cut into his thoughts and saw Bed standing there with a duffle bag thrown over one shoulder. He saw the DS in his hands and heard the familiar theme from Animal Crossing that brought a small smile to his lips. Buck wandered over to his dresser and kneeled down to unplug his phone charger from his wall with a relieved expression. He nodded and wound it up into a small bunder before playing it into his bag. “Now I do. Thank you for reminding me.”

“No problem.” Bed beamed up at him, glancing about his room to take in how much he packed before the smile melted off his face and was replaced with a look of pure concern. A single brow raised and he pointed at the only bag sitting on Buck’s bed with his stylus pen. “Uh… Is that really all your packing? You know we’ll be gone for the whole week right?”

“Yeah, I have all the essentials packed. Toothbrush, toilet paper, thumbtacks, bag of flamin hot cheetos.” Buck listed things off on his fingers and his smile grew wider the deeper the look of concern on Bed’s face grew as he continued to list more and more insane items. After he finished, he paused for several seconds to see how Bed would react but he couldn’t keep in the laughter that bubbled deep in his chest. He covered his mouth with his hand and giggled into his palm, looking away with a sly expression. “I’m just kidding. I’ve already got my other two bags packed and put away in the van. Just getting the last few things that I might have missed.. Like my charger.”

Bed let out a snort and shook his head with a roll of his eyes. He had an amused expression on his face and hummed out his acknowledgement at Buck’s insane list and pointed down the hallway. “Well, when you're done packing the Queen vinyls and all ten seasons of Friends, make sure you grab the map off the dining room table. Criken left it there for you since you insisted on being the navigator for this trip.” He left the room without another word and after a few seconds, the front door opened and shut again as he left the house.

Buck wandered around his room, shutting off electronics and making sure things were in some semblance of order before zipping up his backpack and leaving his bedroom. The door closed with a quiet noise behind him and he just stood there for a moment, listening to how still their home was for the first time in months. There was a distinct lack in typing from Criken’s room and hearing no cursing coming from Tomato’s was certainly new to him. He walked down the hall and closed Bed’s door that he had left open by a crack when he left. His hand touched the handle and he realized that the heavy silence was also in part to the ambiance machine that Bed used to always have on in his room being off now. He closed the door and let out a little sigh, content that they were taking a vacation from the busy confines of their home but also feeling on edge by all the lack of noise around him. Usually there were always feet stomping around upstairs as they ran between bedrooms to hang out but now the only sound that he could hear was the creaking of the wooden floor under foot as he came down the stairs and the old clock that Bed had bought from a yard sale almost a year ago. It made a satisfying tick like an old grandfather clock and had become a staple display piece in their entryway.

He saw the items in the living room that Criken had left for him and a happy feeling blossomed in his chest at the sight of the travelling case that his boyfriend had packed with his insulin and other medical needs. A happy little exhale escaped him and he took the small package in both hands, not knowing how to even portray just how nice it was that he was always being taken care of. Them packing his insulin might have been seen as such a small thing but to him, it was a reminder that yet again, they hadn’t forgotten about him. Bed, Tomato and Criken.. They were always thinking about him and he was never alone. Buck held it close to his chest and took the neatly folded map and directions off the table as well. Feeling a whole new sense of determination blossoming in his chest, he stepped out the front door and locked it behind him. He took the front steps two at a time, practically skipping to their rented vehicle of choice with a carefree air about him. He watched as Bed had placed his duffle bag in the back of the van and looked over at him before giving him a blinding smile. The kind of smile where his eyes crinkled at the corners and his dimples showed. His heart soared at the sight and he flushed pink, joining him at the back to throw his last bag in as well.

“Ready to go kids?” Criken asked, coming up behind the two of them to sling an arm over both their shoulders. He pulled them close to him and was beaming at them akin to that of a proud parent. 

Buck laughed as he was pulled tightly into the one armed embrace and reached a hand up to try and grab at Criken behind him but to no avail. A second of playful struggle passed before he went limp and pouted up at him. “You know for someone who says we're in a rush, you’re like super intended on wasting time. Won’t Tomato be mad that we aren’t even on the road yet? It’s been like an hour since we said we’d leave”

“Tomato is on the phone with his mom.” Criken responded with a sigh and a roll of his eyes. His tone lowered into one that was more serious. His smile was still there but it was more strained. He must have seen the worried expression on Buck’s face because he let out a playful chuckle and pressed their cheeks together in a warm, comforting touch. “Relax, I doubt she’s calling because she needs him to come home or something. It’s probably just to check up on him since he’s not online at the moment.”

“Right..” Buck thought he had pulled off the happy tone well but his worry must not have been as subtle as he thought if the hand that slipped into his was any indication. He looked over at Bed and interlocked their fingers with a weak smile. That hand squeezed his reassuringly. “It’s just.. We’ve worked a lot on this and I think he needs this more than any of us.”

Peeking through the back of the van allowed him to catch a peek at Tomato who was in the driver's seat with his phone pressed to his ear. His head was tilted away so Buck couldn’t see his expression but from his low tone, the conversation must have been something private. He was being quiet and adjusted his other hand over the steering wheel several times in a subconscious gesture, nervously clenching and unclenching. The phone call was quiet enough that the three of them couldn’t make it out, even with the back of the van currently being open and Buck hated being nosey but he couldn’t deny that he was straining his ears to try and pick out familiar sounding words. He couldn’t quite make out what they were saying completely but he identified ‘traffic’ and ‘emergency contact’ and slowly came to the conclusion that his mother was just being a worry wart and was probably running down a long list of things for him to be mindful of... That or it had something to do with the traffic that Tomato was undoubtedly not looking forward to driving in. Shame he was the only one with a drivers license among them.

“Yes…. Yes, okay… Mmhmm..” Tomato beeped the horn once and the three of them looked up to see him staring at them through the rear view mirror. He indicated towards the phone he was still holding and made a twirling gesture with his hand for them to pick up the pace. “I will... And- Yes, there’s…. I packed..”

“Ok you heard him. Time to get going.” Criken unwrapped his arms around Bed and Buck but not before giving them both a peck on the cheek. He looked around the back of the van and appeared to be doing some sort of count in his head. His eyes darted between each bag and his lips formed numbers that didn’t quite fall from his lips. After a look of concentration crossed his brow, he shook it away with a smile and grabbed the back door with both hands. “You both have everything right? Nothing forgotten or packed in the wrong place?”

Buck shook his head and patted at the small carry on bag in his hands. “Thank you for packing my meds for me. I know you were the one who did it so, thank you.” He beamed up at his boyfriend and practically bounced on his heels as Criken stroked fingers through his curly bangs. They were brushed out of his eyes for less than a second before falling in them once more, tickling his forehead. It was probably time for him to get a haircut again but he detested the feeling of strangers touching his hair, even if it was just to get it trimmed into a more manageable mess. 

“Anything for you.” Criken gave him a wink and clicked his tongue in that cheesy way of his before turning on his heels to climb into the front seat and as much as Buck wanted to call ‘shotgun’ just to be a brat, he knew why they had decided on the seating arrangement. It had been discussed between all of them that Criken would get the front due to the leg room that would have. It wasn’t their fault that he was built like a stick bug but they knew if he were seated in the back, his legs would end up being cramped from being in such a tight space for an extended period of time. So naturally, he got the front seat while the ‘kids’ sat in the back.

"Are we there yet-" Buck yelled out while opening the sidedoor, earning himself a death glare from Tomato and a laugh from Criken that he tried to muffle behind his hand. 

"Buck, I swear to god…" Tomato looked up from adjusting his seat and lifted a finger to point at Buck’s reflection in the rear view mirror. A small disgruntled noise left him and he paused as his mother on the other end of the call said something before he made another noise, this one of acknowledgement. "No not an actual buck. Yes, it’s Andrew and no…”

Buck cupped his hands in front of his face and ignored Tomato’s ‘don’t you dare’ glare to continue needling him. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea, ticking off the driver, but he just couldn’t help himself sometimes. Besides, it had been awhile since he had spoken to the kind but paranoid woman that had raised Tomato. “Hey Monica!” 

“Monica, it’s good to hear from you! We haven’t spoken in sooo long.” Criken chimed in and would have said more but he was unfortunately close enough to Tomato to actually earn a physical bat of the hand for his teasing. He was barely put off by the smack and continued to cackle, pressing himself as close to the window as he could to get away from the slaps. “How’s the family?”

“Mom, please. We’re just about to leave and- No, of course I’m not going to talk on the phone and drive…” Tomato continued to thwap Criken’s leg with the back of his hand and only stopped to look up as the other back door opened. He held the phone away from his ear and pressed it to his chest before he gave a pleading stare to Bed who had climbed in and buckled his seatbelt. “Look- No it’s not… That was LIKE one time and it was in Boston..”

Bed looked up at Tomato and the two of them had an unspoken conversation with just a few glances and head nods towards the phone. He put his DS down and made grabby hands towards him and after another long stare, Tomato relented with a sigh and murmured into the phone. “Do you want to speak to Tanner?” Without even having to wait for a response from his mom, he offered him the phone and turned his attention back to the steering wheel with an exasperated sigh. Bed took a hold of the situation smoothly and made an elated noise at whatever Monica was saying to him. He gave a thumbs up to Tomato who mouthed an appreciative ‘thank you’ back at him.

"And here I thought leaving Boston would be good for my health.” Tomato quietly murmured, still mindful that his mother was still on the phone. He took a deep breath and exhaled in a gravelly growl as a hand came down onto his shoulder. His eyes slowly glanced over at Criken sitting next to him and his body leaned into the touch subcounsciously, his frown lessening into a weak pout after a moment of calm. “She calls me almost every day and it can drive me crazy sometimes.”

"You know she only does it because she loves you."

"Yeah.. Your right. It’s just, I feel like I’m going to go insane." He mock whispered back and continued to drum his fingers over the steering wheel. His eyes slowly wandered back to Buck who was in the middle of fiddling with the folds of the map on his lap. There was a flash of realization in his eyes and a heat lit up in them again as he stared down Criken. “Why does Buck have the map?”

"Because I’m the one who wrote all the directions down!" Buck confirmed with a helpful chime and bounced in his seat excitedly as Bed continued to talk on the phone next to him. He saw the bag of junk food on the floor between them and poked around in it till he found the snacks that he had packed for the trip. There was a bag of chips in there somewhere that had his name written on them.

"Alright, who made Buck the navigator?" Tomato inquired, adjusting the rear view mirror so he could catch Bed's eyes. He rose a brow at him accusingly.

Bed pointed at himself before lifting his hand up in a placating gesture . "Don't look at me. I was in charge of snacks for the trip. Oh no, not you Monica. Sorry- Yes I was just talking to Tomato and- yeah.. I didn’t mean to interrupt…. Totally- I agree.. Adblocks." At the curious look he got from Buck, he just shrugged and made a confused expression like even he had no idea what they were talking about. 

It didn't take long for Tomato to narrow down the suspects seeing as how there were only four of them and he exchanged glances with the man sitting next to him. "Criken, why?"

"C'mon.. He wanted something to do for the trip." Criken waved a hand back as him, dismissing any issues he may have seen. He wore a cheeky grin like it was a badge of honor and after clicking his seatbelt into place, leaned back and got comfortable, already having expected the argument that was inbound. "Just let him have some fun. Besides, you’re the driver. I have total faith in your ability to get us to the cottage."

"He's going to get us lost, mark my words." Tomato warned before starting the van. He backed out of the driveway and turned onto the street without another word, only speaking up once Bed finished his conversation on the phone and handed it back to him. He took it and dropped it almost carelessly into the cup holder. “Thanks for taking the reins on that Bed. My mother can be… a bit much.”

“It’s fine, really. Your mom is really nice if a little bit eccentric. But then again, we all know where you get your paranoia from so it’s understandable.” Bed just shrugged again and leaned back in his seat comfortably. He pulled out his DS game again and started it back up with the occasional glance upwards, a devious curl to his lips. “But never mind all that, let’s talk about how Buck is going to get us lost. I’m betting that he drives us to a completely different state.”

Buck puffed his chest out at Tomato’s groan and Criken’s snicker. He held up the folded up map that had been left for him on the table earlier. "You have little faith. I'll have you know that I already have our route planned out in advance. Yep! And I didn’t need anyone’s help doing it either." He unfolded the paper with erratic gestures and glanced around, tracing a finger down several different roads. His eyes darted back and forth as he looked for their rented cottage in the mess of squiggles and street names.

Bed cleared his throat and after a long sideways glance, eased the map out of Buck's hands and flipped it right side up. As quiet and as quick as the motion was, Tomato had still seen it and he brought a hand up to his forehead in a hard facepalm. "Oh I got such a bad feeling about this." 

"Deep breaths." Criken placated with a small smile and continued to stroke down Tomato’s back for several minutes as they quietly drove down the street. Traffic was just as bad as they had expected it would be but they knew once they got out of the busy city, the drive would be easier. The crowded streets of Los Angeles slowly faded out as they got onto the highway and their pace picked up greatly. Eventually they passed by the ‘Welcome to Los Angeles’ sign and found themselves on a stretch of road that wove up and down the uneven hills that continued north for almost an hour without any other intersecting paths.

After almost a half hour of driving on this one road, Buck could tell that they were all worried about where they were. Especially since they hadn’t seen a road sign in awhile. Even he was getting uneasy and flipped the map around over and over as he desperately tried to find them on the paper.

"Criken…" Tomato stared at the man sitting next to him with narrow eyes and a purse of his lips. His fingers tightened around the steering wheel and his eye twitched.

Criken looked over at him with a tired pinch at his brow. He held a single finger up as if he could somehow gain control of the conversation before it began. "Please… Not a word."

"What did I say earlier?"

"I know." Criken murmured, crossing his arms over his chest. He turned his attention to the outside and tried to focus on the trees going by in blurs of green. His words were low as he realized what was about to come next.

"And what did you say earlier??"

"I know!" He threw his hands up and flopped back in his seat.

"And now we're lost. Who's fault is that?"

"Well, technically yours since you're the driver." Bed chimed in from the backseat before noting Tomato's seething stare. He sunk back into his seat, still grinning despite himself and lifted his hands up in surrender. “I’m just trying to lighten the mood.. Look, we’ve all been in the van for almost an hour and a half now. We’re all just stressed out from being trapped for so long.”

"But... I'm telling you, the map says here to take a left." Buck whined and held it up and indicated to it with a finger despite knowing that Tomato was driving and he couldn’t look back at him for too long. He didn’t want them to have an accident but he also didn’t want to be blamed for getting them lost when he was sure that he had done everything correctly. He had been keeping track as best as he could the entire drive and knew it would be a long one but he was sure he could handle it. Was he wrong?

"What left?? Buck, we are between two mountains. There is no left or right."

Criken leaned forward and banged his head on the dashboard before exhaling heavily. He looked up with a red mark at his brow and narrowed his eyes tiredly. "This was such a bad idea. Why did I actually think that going on a road trip was a good idea.."

"To be fair, it's not the driving that's the problem." Bed looked up from his villager running across the screen on his DS and shrugged at Criken. "It's the fact that you insist on doing everything old-school. Seriously, we can probably find the place just as easily if we actually used our phones instead of giving Buck a map of the entirety of California."

"Yeah but that's the whole fun about road trips, you know? Being with people you care about, away from the city and stress, listening to the radio as you drive off into the sunset.." Criken sighed, flopping back in his seat again. A dreamy look overtook his features as he rambled on with a hand pressed gently over his chest. "Pulling off to the side of the road, looking up at the stars, asking for directions at a gas station…"

Tomato gave him another sideways glance but less frustrated this time. He almost looked contemplative and a small smile played at his lips. He glanced away from the road for a second to give him a teasing prod. "What kind of romance novel did you pull that out of?"

"None!" Criken flushed and crossed his arms over his chest with a pout. He turned his body away with an embarrassed flush to his cheeks and faced the window with red cheeks. "I just wanted us to drive around for a bit and prove we could make it on our own."

Bed tilted his head. "And now that we've proven that we are all completely inept at directions... Can we please use google maps to locate the cottage?"

"....fine. We'll use google maps."

Criken pulled out his phone and typed in the address. His lips were pursed and his brows were creased in concentration as he stared at the results on the screen. The only sound that filled the car for the longest time was the quiet beat of some song they didn’t recognize on the radio and Criken typing on his phone. He scrolled down the directions he pulled up and had to read them over at least three times with a scrunched nose. Doing a double take, he looked back over at Tomato to meet his gaze.

"Well?" Tomato inquired.

Criken's lips trembled as he tried to keep in his laughter. "You're going to hate this but… he was right." At the long look he got, he clicked the 'begin' button on the directions and waited for the voice that represented google maps to speak up.

"Turn left." The voice helpfully chimed in.

"Where??"

"Right there. Right thererightthereRIGHTTHERE!" Buck tapped his palm on the window and indicated to their left. The tired screeched beneath them and his body jolted forward before being halted by his seatbelt. He flopped back into his seat and let out a startled noise as the bag of chips that had been on his lap had flown up in his face at the momentum and covered him in chips.

Tomato had stopped the van and peered out along the road, squinting as he looked through the endless curve of hills that seemed to go on forever. After a few moments, he finally saw what they were all indicating towards and sighed. Between two grooves of outcropping was a small dirt road that went on in a zigzag pattern along a different hill. "Seriously? It doesn't even have a sign. How was I supposed to see that?"

"Turn left." The gps voice all-too happily chimed in again.

Criken put the phone into the cupholder and tried for an optimistic outlook. "Hey, at least we found it."

"And I was right!" Buck grabbed the drivers seat from behind and pulled himself as close to Tomato as the seat belt would allow. He leaned up and beamed at Tomato, pressing a kiss to his cheek and let out a happy little laugh. "See? I didn't get us lost."

Tomato exhaled but slowly a smile formed. He touched the place where he had been kissed before reaching back to stroke thumb and forefinger along Buck's chin and relished in the happy noise he received in response. "Yes you got us all the way here. I'm sorry I ever doubted you. I think Bed was right, we’re all just a bit stir crazy from being in the car for so long." He pressed his foot back on the gas and made the turn onto the dirt road. 

“How much longer does the gps say we have left?” Bed piped up from beside Buck, helping him clean off the chips that had spilled down his front by picking them off him one at a time and eating them. “It feels like we have been trapped in this van for an eternity now.”

Picking his phone back up, Criken unlocked it and scrolled through the directions once more. He hummed out loud as he searched for that information before making a popping noise with his mouth. “Looks like we got about twenty minutes left. We just need to follow this path upwards and stay on it till we reach Summit Road. There should be an indication for it because of how many cottages are up here so we should be good.”

“Awesome.” Bed responded back and slouched more in his seat. He curled up next to Buck and the two of them cleaned up as many crumbs as they could before replacing all the snacks they didn’t eat and the empty packaging into the bag he had brought. They gathered up the mess of comic books that Buck had been reading and stored Bed’s DS away so it wouldn’t get dropped or forgotten under the seat. By the time they had everything packed up and sitting on the floor between them, the van went over a bump and the sound of gravel underneath indicated that Tomato had turned off onto Summit Road.

Buck looked out the window wide eyed at the amount of butterflies that were fluttering back and forth between flowers that had to be six feet tall. He pressed his palms to the glass and took in every colour and shape with the doe eyed fascination of a child. His smile only grew ten folds as they came closer to a structure hidden among the tall pines that almost seemed to touch the clouds. “Is this it?” He asked excitedly, glancing over his shoulder at Bed to see him staring out his own window as well.

“Yep, we’re here boys.” Criken had a wide sweeping gesture in front of them as the van slowed to a crawl and approached the two story cottage as they all took it in for the first time ever. The cabin was a mute shade of brown that almost blended with its surroundings. There was a stone chimney that rose up to the sky, tall and sturdy with a surrounded porch made of stained wood and beautiful stone work. The front of the cottage had an open concept porch that completely circled the perimeter of the second floor and was rested on stilts to allow the van to pull up underneath its protective awning. The entire area around the cabin was composed of different stone panelled steps that wandered off to different portions of the property. A garden had taken to growing wildly up the scaffolding next to the front door and made a natural archway overtop of a set of steps that went down into what Buck could only assume was where the lake was.

Tomato parked the van underneath the awning and removed the key, sitting back for a moment in his seat while taking in the view around him. He was rather quiet for a long time and slowly a smile found its way on his tired features. “You know,” He started in a quiet tone. “The pictures really don’t do this place justice. It’s bigger than I thought it would be.”

***

Buck and Bed dragged a couple of suitcases into the main foyer while Tomato wandered slowly past them with a duffle bag under one arm. His other hand stroked at his creased brow in a tired gesture. He let out a long yawn and started as Criken came up next to him and rested a hand on his shoulder.

“Maybe you should go lay down?”

Tomato looked like he was about to argue but a look from the other three had his frustration dying on his tongue. He turned red at the attention and rubbed at the back of his neck nervously. “Are you sure? I can help you guys bring the rest of the stuff in.”

Buck puffed out his cheeks and stood up, stomping over to poke Tomato’s chest. He made an indignant noise and gestured towards the stairs, not knowing the layout of the place yet but was sure there’d be a bedroom up there. “No. I don’t want to hear it. Upstairs now.” At the look he received, Buck stomped his foot one more time and pointed at the stairs again to invalidate any arguments from Tomato.

“Probably best to just listen to him.” Bed called from a different room. There were the sounds of cupboards opening and closing, followed with the sound of a microwave beeping. “You know he’s right anyways.”

Criken nodded as Tomato glanced his way and smoothed a hand down his arm. “It’s alright. You drove us all the way here, you deserve to go lay down for a bit. We’ll take care of unpacking things before you wake up again.” 

“Alright but-” Tomato pulled his phone out of his jeans pocket and held it up, staring down the front of the screen as he unlocked it. He let out a long exasperated sigh that blew his bangs out of his eyes and showed the numerous texts that he had received from his mother during the three hour drive to the cottage. “My mom insisted that I call when I arrived and you know how she gets if I don’t respond.”

“I’ll call her.” Bed responded, coming out of the kitchen with a towel in hand. He was wiping his hands and tossed it over one shoulder, extending his now dry hand for the phone. Once it was placed in his hand he made a motion towards the stairs with his head. “Alright. Up to bed now. We can finish things up without you.”

“Are you sure-”

“Tomato!” The three of them yelled back at him all at the same time. Criken gave him a playful twap to the back of his head. Bed snorted out in amusement at the startled expression on Tomato’s face and Buck took his hand to guide him up the steps. He gave him a tug and felt Tomato relent behind him, slowly trailing after him with sluggish movements. They walked up to the second floor and passed by several paintings on the walls before stopping in front of one of the doors.

Buck opened the door to reveal a four post bed and beautiful curtains drawn to let just enough light in to brighten the doorway. There was a joined bathroom connected to it with the basic necessities within and Buck approached it, flicking the lightswitch on to peek around inside. He saw a toilet and a small shower pressed up against one wall. The entire room was white but painted with floral stencils that traced the ceiling and floor. It looked like the place was owned by an elderly if the choice in colours and paintings said anything. Buck shut the light off when he felt a tug at his hand and turned to see Tomato staring at the blankets one the bed with an intense look in his eyes.

“What’s wrong?” He followed his gaze to the lovely wooden framed bed and large duvet. It looked like the kind of bed one could sink into and lose themselves in the depths of the sheets. The top of the bed had at least a dozen more pillows then were actually necessary but he didn’t see anything wrong with it. “Something the matter?”

“It’s.. pink.” Tomato grumbled but despite his words, approached the bed and let go of Buck’s hand. He yawned and barely got his glasses off his face before he flopped forward, causing some of the pillows to go flying at the impact. His face was buried in the sheets and he murmured incoherently to himself for a few moments. After a few quiet moments, his muttering was replaced with deep breaths as he snored.

Buck gently pried the glasses from his hand and rested them on the table nearby. He leaned over the bed and pressed a gentle kiss to the back of his neck then drew the curtains tight to keep the lights out. “Sleep tight.” Buck whispered, flicking off the light switches and dropping the room in complete darkness. He could still hear Tomato snoring as he closed the door behind him and slipped quietly down the stairs to the living room. Spotting Bed and Criken sitting on the couch, he snuck up behind them and crawled over the back to flop himself over both of their laps.

Criken almost got kicked in the head at the motion and Bed had to shift around to prevent him from elbowing him in the dick but eventually he got into a comfortable position laid out lengthwise across them.

“Finally got Tomato off to bed.”

“Good to hear. We got most of everything inside from the van.” Bed explained to Buck, bringing a hand down to caress his head carefully on his lap. Tomato’s phone was resting on the living room table alongside Bed’s DS and a bowl of freshly made popcorn. “There’s still a matter of picking rooms but I get the feeling we won’t have to worry about that. Criken found some movies to watch in the tv cabinet. Lots of oldies but they do have Godzilla.” Bed reached forward and grabbed the bowl of popcorn off the table to place it on Buck’s stomach. Once they were all settled into comfortable positions, he beamed over at Criken and leaned his head against his shoulder, tiredness seeping into his bones. 

Buck curled up till he was all nice and cozy against Bed, his head tucked protectively in his arms as the movie was clicked on and the trailers started to play on the screen. “Aw man, I loved the old Godzilla movie.” He looked up to see two of his favourite boys leaning against each other and watching with content expressions on their faces. Criken caught his staring and smiled in a way that had his heart leap in his chest and a warmth spread on his face. He reached forward with a weak wave and felt his hand get taken in a gentle hold. Criken pressed a kiss to his wrist and he had to refrain from giggling lest he wake up Bed who had dozed off halfway during a dramatic scene in the movie.

“Buck?” 

He looked back at Criken with a curious quirk in brow, not knowing what he wanted but from the look in his eyes he could tell it was serious. Buck tilted his head to the side but said nothing, waiting for him to continue speaking without having to worry about being interrupted.

“This really was a good idea. Thank you.”

He was right.

It was the best week they had ever had..

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading. See you in the next one.


End file.
